Sir Karl Jenkins scoops world’s most performed living composers gong
Barbara Eifler presented the 2016 Sir Charles Groves Prize to Sir Karl Jenkins at a concert on Friday (29 September) featuring world première performances of excerpts from his work Symphonic Adiemus.
The award was presented at the Royal Festival Hall during the first of three performances, conducted by Sir Karl himself (at the Royal Festival Hall in London, Symphony Hall in Birmingham, and Bridgewater Hall in Manchester) of the new work alongside fan-favourite The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace.
One of the most performed living composers in the world, Sir Karl Jenkins’ prolific career spans the music worlds of classic, jazz, advertising and film. In 2015 he was confirmed as the most popular living composer in Classic FM’s ‘Ultimate Hall of Fame’.
The Board of Making Music was unanimous and enthusiastic in selecting Sir Karl Jenkins for this award, given the accessibility and enormous popularity of his works with leisure-time choirs in particular up and down the country, introducing new generations of performers and their audiences to ground-breaking work from a living composer.
